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SINGAPORE: The oil and gas industry remains promising in the long run despite the current global economic slowdown, according to Singapore's Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry S Iswaran.
Opening the four-day International Oil and Gas Exhibition and Conference on Tuesday, Mr Iswaran said this is a good time for the sector to learn how to cope with the short-term challenges ahead in order to position itself for future opportunities.
The event attracts companies from about 50 countries worldwide, and it is Asia's largest for the sector.
The oil and gas industry is all fired up, especially for the prospects in Southeast Asia and Asia. And Singapore wants to tap into the growth.
"It's an industry where we've got strong capabilities. We've got some world-class companies which are Singapore-owned or Singapore-based and also there are a lot of international companies that see us as a very competitive location from which to pursue opportunities," said Mr Iswaran.
Agreeing with that are 45 UK companies which make up the largest group of exhibitors at the event.
"I think it's a vibrant area, a developing world economy... And a lot of emphasis (is placed) on places like Singapore on providing services for extraction of energy from the earth, and refining it and making it available to consumers," said the chief executive of Energy Industries Council, Mike Major.
It is the first time Russian firms are participating in the event, and they are positive about prospects here.
"Especially in this crisis, we see this market much more attractive to our company as there are a lot of areas, shallow water areas in Indonesia for example, (and) in Malaysia and Vietnam where our vessels could be used," said the representative of SMNG (Russia), Andrey Romanov.
Despite the economic slowdown, this year's exhibition has attracted over 1,300 exhibitors, about 400 more compared to the last show in 2006.
Mr Iswaran said this shows that the oil and gas sector is a long-term growth industry for this region. In fact, he added that many companies are already signing up to participate in the next show in 2010.
- CNA/yt
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